Learning

Relationships and relational learning are at the heart of learning at St Michael’s, where students can build a strong sense of belonging within a safe, secure and caring environment. As stated in our learning philosophy, Students at St Michael’s grow into will become autonomous, continuous, flexible, resilient, creative and transdisciplinary learners. Imbued with the capacity for curiosity, self-reflection, critical analysis and compassion, St Michael’s students take action within a clear and rigorous moral framework.

St Michael’s learners have the ability to develop their own learning strategies, with our curriculum drawing on the skills of the ‘continuous autonomous learner’, the ‘collaborative networker’, the ‘wise analyser’ and the ‘creative synthesiser’. Students receive regular comprehensive assessment and feedback on their progress. These skills, coupled with an extensive co-curricular/extracurricular program, enable students to engage positively with an increasingly complex and diverse world.

The St Michael’s approach to learning is based on the idea that young people need to become continuous, autonomous learners in the face of constant change. That is, they must develop an understanding of what is required to be active, evolving learners who can continually adapt to and engage with the demands of their ever-changing contexts.

This is very different from the demands of 19th- and 20th-century industrial models of schooling, which focused on a fixed canon of knowledge, assessed with tests and examinations. In contrast, learning for the 21st century requires all of us to access our potential to be continuous and autonomous learners. Central to this learning philosophy is the St Michael’s K–12 structure, which incorporates the full diversity of students.